I was lucky enough to host Bijou’s Decadence Rouge for a bit and it was marvelous! It was a TRUE RED wrap. I have the hardest time finding the perfect red. Sometimes it’s more pink, sometimes it’s more orange. But Decadence Rouge was RED. It’s been dubbed the Harley Quinn wrap and you can definitely see why. As a bit of a comic book fan, I wish I could keep it for any future Comic Cons.

Decadence Rouge is a black double weft wrap. This double weave is glorious! It makes it feel like a nice marshmallow on your shoulders. It’s got that memory foam cush that I love for my heavy toddler. There is limited give, not much stretch — it is a bit on the dense side. Notably thicker, but that’s the double weave I was talking about. It is a solid wrap – I didn’t have to readjust Tot when he was up for a good amount of time. Rouge is a bit on the warm side because of this, as well.

I love wraps that are base -2, so I was excited to try out some of my “shorty” carries. One of my carries that I love to do is the torso wrap. That helps me figure out whether or not I need to constantly tighten or readjust. I didn’t have to at all, during our 45 minute weekly grocery shopping trip. The wrap is a little bit on the bulky side, but I can see it softening up with more use.

This wrap isn’t quite a workhorse wrap, pulls can happen with the weave. The dark colors do make me want to wear it everywhere though. I also don’t have to worry about it picking up dirt. Rouge is cotton, so I wouldn’t have any issues throwing her into the washer (but don’t forget to contact the company for specific washing directions!).

Rouge is grippy! The microtexture on this is spot on! The passes take a little bit of work to get into place, but a little shimmying here and there never hurt anyone. The texture is there, so the passes lock in once the carry is complete. My little loved running his hands back and forth on it. Rouge is currently retaining its shape, but I can see it getting floppier with more love.

I’m sad it’s gone, but I loved it when it was here. Rouge was available for preorder, which I wish I got in on.

My kids love road trips and luckily, one to Monterey is a short one. Once I announced where we were going, Birdie packed up her backpack and Tot slowly copied her. They grabbed their tablets and ran to the car. Since Monterey is only about an hour and a half to two hours away, we opted to leave early in the morning so we could spend the whole day there. Sometimes we like to start a little later in the day, so we can stop by Moss Landing and eat some lunch at Phil’s Fish Market.

We parked in one of the local parking garages and walked over. It is such a pretty walk. Birdie wanted to stop in every single little store that she saw, but we had dates with the jellyfish. The jellyfish are my favorite.

Tot was so interested in touching he bubbles. He liked all the interactive spots. The Aquarium is definitely for all ages. He was so happy to be able to walk around and play.

The Puffin exhibit was our second favorite. This little one kept coming up to the window and swimming in front of us. Birdie sat here for a good 20 minutes, just watching him. It was adorable.

Birdie wore her baby throughout the entire aquarium! I was pretty impressed. She wore her baby in a traditional sling carry, using an old scarf. She was drawn to this exhibit because of the colors.

There are so many different things to check out when you’re in the area! I was curious about anything specific we should check out, we tend to hit up Cannery Row and the Monterey Bay Aquarium when we’re in town, so we looked up a Monterey travel guide.

Check these places out if you ever get a chance:

Fisherman’s Wharf

Cannery Row

Dennis the Menace park

Monterey Bay Aquarium

17-Mile Drive

Surrey Ride

Carmel-by-the-Sea

There are just so many things to do in Monterey. You could spend a week there, visit one place each day and have a lot of relaxation in the middle.

I would love to do a drive to Big Sur some time over the summer. I think the kids would get a kick out of it and the adults would love it. It seems to be a great family travel spot.

I love Monterey! It’s such a great area, a great little town. The people are friendly and there is just so much to do there. I would recommend this trip to anyone and everyone.

I was chosen to reveal Midnight Sky noir weft on Apple Blossom Woven’s Facebook page. This gorgeous wrap showed up on my doorstep and I’ve been wearing it everywhere! It was love at first sight once I got that package open. The kiddos fought over it and dubbed it “blueberry”. I’ve been posting black and white shots so I can still post photos daily, but this color needs to be seen.

Look at this color! I’ve been stopped multiple times when I’m out at the grocery store, with caregivers wanting to know more about it. Little kids have stopped me, asking to touch it and just loving on the colors. I honestly can’t stop looking at it.

Apple Blossom Wovens is a small, woman-owned business in the United States. Lisa is the owner and she is responsible for designing it all. I’ve been following ABW for a long time – I loved that the wraps from their original lines were machine woven, but look and feel handwoven. I also reviewed two wraps from their Heirloom line earlier this year.

Midnight Sky arrived pre-washed, which I loved. I was able to throw Tot up right away, without having to wait to wash and air dry. Thank you Lisa! First thing I noticed was MS is extremely soft. It only had one wash and it was our first time up, and it was already soft. Not much to do to speed up the breaking in process.

I threw Tot up in a ruck, Shepherd’s Carry, reinforced ruck and a scarf carry. Those are my go-to’s for shorter wraps. MS shined in all of the carries. There was no digging in the shoulder at all. The wrap was extremely cushy, but pretty solid. There’s limited give, which might change a tiny bit as I break in the wrap more – but it stayed still in every carry. I didn’t have to adjust any passes at all.

Right now I feel the wrap is a bit on the dense side, it’s slightly cumbersome. I feel like that will change as the wrap gets broken in more. I have a feeling it will mold to me more as time goes on.

Midnight Sky is 100% cotton – so very low maintenance. I can throw it into the wash, without worry of the different fibers. MS barely picks up any dirt when we’re out. It had a great time at the beach, where I just had to shake out the sand. There are no special washing directions, and I don’t see it being too prone to pulls either (but be careful with jewelry and uneven nails – just in case!).

I wouldn’t say that Midnight Sky is hot. It’s dense, but not too heavy. I wouldn’t quite say airy either. Maybe right in between?

Midnight Sky is pretty grippy. You can feel the texture of the wrap when you rub your fingers on it. You can definitely feel the weave. MS is floppy already and it’s just going to get better with time, that’s for sure.

Here are some macro shots of the weave, because I love macro shots.

Midnight Sky noir weft will be released Tuesday, April 18 at 2pm EDT on Apple Blossom Wovens’ website. It’s a limited release, so you don’t want to miss it!

There’s also a separate release for ABW’s international fans. The international release is Wednesday, April 19 at 7am EDT.

I was so excited to check it this wrap! I’ve never heard of Almitra Tattva before. I saw another babywearer using it and I wanted to find out as much as I could about it. I thought the design was simply gorgeous and I loved the colors. I knew I had to host it so I could try it out.

My first thought? I was slightly overwhelmed by the pattern when I saw it in person. The kids were so excited to see all the different animals and kept calling them out. They loved the intricate pattern, which was extremely different from the other wraps that I’ve used. Second thought? So so soft.

Pink Imperia is double woven. There are two sets of warp and weft yarns. That’s what makes it so supportive for such a thin wrap. Tot is on the heavier side (35+ lb) so I was afraid to put him up in a single pass carry. I got the chance to put him up in a ruck, and it was smooth sailing. It’s an extremely supportive wrap, with no digging in the shoulders! It was nice to have on at all times, for varying amount of time.

I wouldn’t say Imperia was marshmallow-y, but it was cushy in its own way. Maybe because of the double weave? It felt nice on the shoulders, without giving my back a hard time. There is limited give, not really stretchy or bouncy.

Pink Imperia is a pretty solid wrap. I didn’t really notice any kind of stretch. It made it supportive for my almost 40 lb. toddler. We had no issues with him up, and we didn’t have to readjust at all. I wouldn’t consider this wrap to be cumbersome, but there’s no stretch so I wouldn’t consider it ace bandage-y either. It was just right in between.

This wrap is 100% cotton – so there are no special care directions to follow. I wouldn’t call Imperia a workhorse wrap, I would want to be careful of pulling a thread due to the intricate design on the wrap.

I had no issues with the gliding of passes. The pattern’s sight texture helped keep each pass where I needed it. The wrap was super soft and snuggly when it was here. Almost like a near and dear blanket. The 100% cotton makes this an airy wrap – had no heat retention issues at all. Pink Imperia became super floppy with a bit more work, but I can see it becoming even softer.

I love macro shots. These are my favorite. As you can see the pink threads are even brighter close up. With the weaving process, the colors end up not so bright – making more of a purple color.

I’ve been excited to check out Babylonia’s BB-Slen Passionfruit, since I previously owned their version of the meh dai (BB-Tai). I received a package from their US retailer, Nova Natural Toys & Crafts, and it was full of goodies for my little ones. Both kiddos received baby carriers (a doll meh dai and doll ring sling) with some babies to fill them. Such a sweet surprise.

Passionfruit is a striped wrap, with perfect fall colors. I’m a fan of these colors year round. I love the stripes – they really help with teaching and learning different carries. The stripes help you differentiate which rail is up and which is down. I hope this wrap helps one of the many teaching libraries in the area.

This wrap is a thinner wrap. It’s soft enough for a newborn and can definitely be used for bigger/heavier babies in multi-pass carries. It’s 100% cotton – so it’s nice and breathable. It would make a wonderful wrap on hot days. It’s easy care, which I know is very important to some parents. You can just throw it into the washer when it’s dirty. No special instructions.

I love using Passionfruit for multi-pass carries. With a smaller baby, I can see using it with a single pass carry or a one shoulder pass. A heavier baby might need the multi-pass carries if you’re carrying for a long period of time. I haven’t had any issues with shoulder digging, but I could see that it might be possible with carrying for a while.

This wrap is also pretty solid. I didn’t notice any stretch being a factor. There is limited give and I didn’t have to readjust or fix any passes. I would consider this a workhorse wrap. I could use it for anything and have no issue throwing it in the wash if necessary. Like I previously stated, it’s an airy wrap. It doesn’t retain much heat at all.

This wrap isn’t too slippery, nor is it sticky. Knots hold tight. Slip knots work really well. This wrap is soft and snuggly – almost reminds me of my favorite flannel shirt. It’s floppy from the first time you wash it. It’s a great starter wrap, a great teaching wrap, a great wrap all together.

I was offered the chance to test out Apple Blossom Wovens’ Heirloom Ruby and Sapphire and I jumped on it. Ruby and Sapphire are a part of ABW’s Heirloom line that have just started to be released. Heirloom Ruby is a mercerized cotton blend and Heirloom Sapphire is 100% cotton. I was able to test out both wraps during the same time so I could try out and compare both blends.

Heirloom is a great print! It’s dry to the touch, but it’s nicely textured. They are also grippy. They have some micro-texture, but not so grippy where it’s hard to get passes around. It helps to get the passes to “lock” right into place and not slip. There is some stretch (horizontally and vertically – and dare I say diagonally?!), which gives it a bit of a bounce – makes for amazing chest passes.

Heirloom Sapphire is the perfect blue. I love my blues, so I was excited that I was going to get to try this one out. Sapphire is 100% cotton. It’s a pretty solid wrap, with just a bit of bounce. I was the first one to play with it, so it wasn’t fully broken in – but it was well on its way. It started to get floppy when it was time for it to go.

Heirloom Ruby is a true red. It’s hard to find a true red wrap, so I was anxious to see Ruby in person. Tot designated the red wrap “the best” and used it as a blanket for its duration here. The merc cotton in Ruby was amazing. It made the wrap smoother, so less textured. So it was easier to glide- should have made the passes slippery, but didn’t because of the micro-texture that I mentioned above. It almost felt like it had a tiny bit of a shine – at least in direction sunlight. Even though it came to me brand new, it was soft – softer than Sapphire. It was cuddly and smooshy – probably why Tot made it his blanket.

I would definitely recommend both wraps to a beginner. They are easy to use wraps, extremely easy to tighten each rail. They are easy care wraps – so washing them is no issue. I can imagine wrapping an itty bitty newborn in the cushy wrap of Ruby, and throwing my toddler up in Sapphire – and then switching with no issue.